State releases final medical marijuana regulations

ALBANY—The final regulations for the state's medical marijuana program, which is supposed to be operational by January, appear close to the proposed rules the state issued in December, disappointing patient advocates whose public comments indicated their hope for a less restrictive program.

For example, the state is still limiting the number of dispensaries to 20, leaving many to worry they will have to drive hours to gain access. The final regulations, released late Tuesday evening, do not add, as many had hoped they would, new conditions for which it is permissible to seek marijuana, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

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"[T]he Commissioner believes the current list [of conditions] is reasonable and supported by scientific based evidence," the health department said in issuing the final regulations.

Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, the law’s sponsor, has said the regulations are needlessly restrictive and could limit patient access to the drug.

Gottfried, the health committee chairman, called some of the proposed restrictions “gratuitously cruel” in comments he submitted to the state health department earlier this year. His were among hundreds of comments the department received over the past several months on the draft regulations.

Many of the concerns appear to have gone unheeded.

In a summary document posted on its website, the health department explained why it decided to keep the regulations largely the same as proposed.

“New York State recognizes that possession and use of marijuana is illegal in the United States. However, the State also recognizes the benefit in making available medical marijuana to qualified individuals with debilitating and life threatening illnesses and conditions. To that end, the Compassionate Care Act ... is balanced legislation that ensures appropriate access through comprehensive regulations and safeguards,” the summary document said.

State health commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker will consider allowing nurse practitioners to prescribe the drug for patients, the health department said in response to some commenters' concerns that allowing only doctors to prescribe the drug was too restrictive.

The state also will “consider” expanding the number of licenses available to manufacture the drug at some future point. The law currently allows only five licenses statewide.

Other patient advocates have questioned whether the price of the drug, which will be set by the state, would be prohibitive for low-income patients. In response, the state said, the health commissioner could allow some distribution of low- or no-cost samples of the drug, including “a charity program offered by a registered organization.”

Some of the most important information remains unknown.

For example, those interested in growing and dispensing medical marijuana still do not know how and when to apply.

The actual price of the drug has also not yet been decided. Instead, the regulations require "registered organizations submit proposed prices" for medical marijuana to the health department for approval. The health department can then decide whether that price is acceptable or needs to be modified and reset the price, an arrangement similar to how insurers propose their rates.